Draft National Planning Policy Guidance
24th September 2013
The Government has published its draft National Planning Policy Guidance – 500 pages of guidance on 38 subjects – and we only have until 9 October to comment!
Our chief concerns…
The National Planning Policy Guidance (NPPG) provides more detail to underpin the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
It’s vital to get it right as this is the information which will be taken into account when judging future planning applications. If we want the right development in the right place, we need the right guidelines in place to support this.
There’s a lot to wade through in a short time, but here are some of the issues we are concerned about:
– a proposed ‘affordability test’ which seems to draw a naive link between more building and the cost of housing
– the ‘duty to co-operate’ between local planning authorities which currently gives no mention to the Green Belt
– the proposed key steps section for neighbourhood planning which is set at such a high level that it could put communities off getting involved.
Nationally, CPRE will be working through the Guidance and putting in detailed comments. Why not also take a look and comment for yourself? If you have particular concerns or issues relating to Oxfordshire that you think we should be flagging up, then please let us know.
The draft National Planning Policy Guidance (and how to respond to the consultation)